Soul Searching
by badly-knitted
Summary: Wondering why certain people seem to find him so annoying, JJ does some serious soul searching. Set just before Like Like Love. Written for a prompt at fic promptly.


**Title:** Soul Searching

 **Author:** badly-knitted

 **Characters:** JJ, Dee, Drake.

 **Rating:** G

 **Setting:** Not long before Like Like Love.

 **Summary:** Wondering why certain people seem to find him so annoying, JJ does some serious soul searching.

 **Word Count:** 760

 **Written For:** My own prompt 'FAKE, JJ, He doesn't understand why some people find his natural exuberance and affectionate nature annoying, but he won't change who he is for anybody,' at fic_promptly.

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.

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JJ is a nice guy; he knows he is. He's generous, good-natured, friendly, hard-working, always willing to help his friends out, and loyal to a fault. That's why it's so difficult for him to understand why some people find his natural exuberance and affectionate nature annoying. Dee in particular seems to resent him for his upbeat attitude and willingness to please, which hurts. A lot. JJ would do anything for Dee, with one exception; he won't change who he is for anyone, not even for Mr Wonderful.

He likes people, he likes to have fun, and he's basically a happy person who just wants everybody else to be happy too. What's so terrible about that? He just can't for the life of him figure that one out. Isn't being happy a good thing? Isn't it better to show your friends that you care about them than to brush them off when they're feeling down? Doesn't everybody want to be hugged?

Apparently not, judging by the way Dee always yells at him and tries to push him away. Not that JJ gives up that easily, he just holds on as tight as he can for as long as he can, in the faint hope that he might one day hug Dee into submission. The gorgeous black haired, green-eyed love god seriously needs to lighten up, he's always much too tense for his own good, and he never hugs back.

Drake does though, which JJ appreciates more than he can say. Drake is more than just his work partner, he's JJ's best friend, and he gives good hugs, even if he is a bit on the skinny side. He needs feeding up, so JJ often buys him lunch, or a snack, but maybe he should take Drake out for a proper meal, a nice dinner after work some night. It's the sort of thing friends do for one another, and it would be a good way to thank his partner for always being there for him.

It's nice having Drake Parker for a partner, the two of them get along really well. True, Drake's a bit of a pessimist, and JJ's doing his best to help his buddy with that, but he's always ready and willing to lend an ear, or a shoulder for JJ to cry on when Dee's being mean to him, which is most of the time. And even though Drake is almost permanently broke, he's kind and thoughtful, and huggable, and he has nice eyes, like melted chocolate, and a sort of sad, resigned smile from being dumped so often…

Dee is everything JJ has always wanted; tall, dark, sexy, and drop dead gorgeous, but his personality doesn't match his looks, and everything JJ does seems to make him angry. Drake doesn't have those movie star looks, or that perfectly toned body, but he's cute and he likes JJ just the way he is. Drake has never tried to change him either, and instead of getting mad, he smiles when JJ is being a bit overenthusiastic over something. He's honest, and sweet, and funny, and even though he has absolutely no fashion sense… well, that could be fixed easily enough. After all, what JJ doesn't know about fashion and style isn't worth knowing.

He watches Dee stalk past, being Mr Grumpy, but for once he doesn't launch himself at the man whose love he's tried to win for so long. Instead he turns to Drake, who's just walked in, shoulders slumped and an aura of almost palpable gloom hovering over him.

"Drake, what happened?"

"My girlfriend dumped me by text message, and our suspect gave us the slip. Today officially sucks."

"Oh Drakey!" JJ wraps his arms around his friend in a consoling hug. "I'm so sorry! But you know what? If your girlfriend can't see what a wonderful guy who are, she doesn't deserve you anyway, and you're better off without her. You'll meet the right person someday."

Drake hugs back, a warm and familiar squeeze, and when JJ pulls away, his friend looks happier, is even smiling a little. "Thanks, JJ. I really needed that. You're a true friend, and I'm glad you're my partner."

"Always, Drakey. I'll always be here for you, that's a promise." JJ feels like he's really seeing Drake Parker for the first time, and something surprising suddenly occurs to him… Maybe he and Drake should stop mooning over unattainable people who will never appreciate them. Just maybe, what they both need has been right in front of them the whole time.

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The End


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